Route 202 Bridge Due to Reopen by Monday

For those who like big trucks and construction, the final phase of the bridge replacement along Route 202 at the Somerset-Morris border was a site to behold this week — a precast concrete bridge arrived in four pieces weighing almost 200,000 pounds apiece and were laid into a prepared 100-foot-long span over the Passaic River.

The contruction site was still a very busy scene on Friday afternoon. The state's contractor, Joseph M. Sanzari Cos. of Hackensack was preparing the bridge site just north of the to be ready to be reopened for traffic by Monday morning, said Trish Schweitzer, project manager.

The to allow the demolition of the old bridge, circa 1924, and the arrival of the new bridge. "We will be working part of the weekend," Schweitzer said, adding that even after the bridge reopens workers will be at the location finishing up

Bernardsville Borough Councilman Joe Rossi, who's "done a lot of construction" said he has continuously checked in on the project, especially to watch the arrival of the precast bridge pieces, including the main decks comprised of steel girders encased in concrete.

He said the prefabricated bridge, including a stone wall, arrived via trucks. But he said the most amazing scene was to watch the mammoth pieces laid into place by two 600-ton cranes, one placed at the Somerset County border, in Bernards Township, and the other operating from the Morris County side in Harding Township. The bridge had been manufactured to specifications at an off-site location.

Rossi said he feels it was amazing that a bridge along a state highway could be replaced with very little impact to the area. Previously, without a precast span, such a project might have required months of a road closure along Route 202, which is the main artery between the Somerset Hills area, Morristown and towns in between.

Rossi praised Schweitzer, whom he said "ran the whole job."

He and Bernards Township Administrator Bruce McArthur had noted the closure time was coordinated for late August, when many drivers are on vacation.

The New Jersey Department of Transportation had set up a temporary traffic light and coordinated detours for the closure in anticipation of the bridge closure last Saturday evening.

The bridge is crossed each day by about 10,000 vehicles, according to the DOT.

The kept open since last March, while preliminary and preparation work was performed at the site.

according to a letter sent out in Februrary by the state Department of Transportation.